Department for Transport

High Speed 2 Railway Line

lord berkeley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the justification under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 for the delay in providing a PwC Report on the comparative costs of developing and constructing high speed rail lines in Europe and elsewhere, requested on 30 November 2017.

baroness sugg: The PWC report on the comparative costs of developing and constructing high speed lines in Europe and elsewhere was withheld under section 22 (1) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 because it is intended for future publication. In applying this exemption we had to balance complex public interest consideration in withholding or disclosing the report. We found the balance to be in favour of withholding at that time and that remains our position. I can reaffirm that HS2 Ltd intend to publish this report in the coming months.

Airports

the earl of glasgow: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have made any assessment of the case for locating Britain's future international hub airport in Birmingham, rather than Heathrow or the South East; and if not, why not.

baroness sugg: In autumn 2012, the Airports Commission was established with a remit to identify the scale and timing of any requirement for additional capacity to maintain the UK’s position as Europe’s most important aviation hub. The Commission assessed 58 options for the provision of the additional airport capacity needed, including expanding Birmingham airport. In its interim report, the Commission concluded that expansion through the addition of one new runway in the South East of England was required by 2030. The Commission shortlisted three schemes; two at Heathrow Airport and one at Gatwick Airport and after carrying out further assessment and public consultation on all three schemes it unanimously recommended a new Northwest Runway at Heathrow Airport in combination with a significant package of measures to address its environmental and community impacts. The Government received the Commission’s final report in July 2015 and in December 2015, following a review of the Commission’s work, the Government accepted the need for one new runway in the South East of England. Following a period of further work, the Government announced its preference for the Heathrow Northwest Runway scheme in October 2016.   The Airports National Policy Statement, which was designated on 26 June 2018, provides the primary basis for decision-making on development consent applications for a Northwest Runway at Heathrow Airport, clarifying what is required to enable development, whilst setting clear requirements to mitigate the impacts.

Northern Ireland Office

British Irish Intergovernmental Conference

lord maginnis of drumglass: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Duncan of Springbank on 20 June (HL8501), what assessment they have made of the comments of the Irish Foreign Affairs Minister, Simon Coveney, about the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference in July as a forum for working “to achieve the earliest operation of the devolved institutions”; whether restoring the operation of the devolved institutions will be discussed with the government of Ireland at the Conference; and if so, why.

lord duncan of springbank: The British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference (BIIGC) is concerned with non-devolved Northern Ireland issues. It is not an executive body and as the Belfast Agreement states ‘there will be no derogation from the sovereignty of either government’.

Brexit: Northern Ireland

baroness altmann: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they intend to take to reassureNorthern Irish businesses that their operations will not be interrupted if the UK leaves the EU in March 2019 without a withdrawal agreement.

lord duncan of springbank: The Government has agreed a detailed proposal for a UK-EU free trade area which will establish a common rule book for industrial goods and agricultural products and maintain high standards in these areas. This proposal will protect jobs and livelihoods and ensure that both sides meet their commitments to Northern Ireland and Ireland through the overall future relationship, whilst retaining the constitutional integrity of the United Kingdom and respecting the result of the referendum. Further details are set out in the White Paper. We are confident that this proposal will work for the UK and the EU and look forward to productive discussions. As a responsible Government we will also continue to prepare for a range of outcomes, including the unlikely scenario in which no mutually satisfactory agreement can be reached.

Department of Health and Social Care

Radiotherapy

baroness altmann: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plansthey have to ensure radiotherapy treatment for NHS patients is not interrupted if there is no withdrawal deal agreed with the European Union before March 2019

lord o'shaughnessy: The Government is confident of securing a withdrawal deal with the European Union before we leave in March 2019. However, we are preparing for all potential outcomes, including the unlikely scenario in which a mutually satisfactory agreement cannot be reached.The Department is currently undertaking a risk assessment of the supply chain for all medicines and treatments, including radiotherapy, used on the National Health Service. This will ensure that any potential impact on the availability of medicines and medical isotopes for the NHS arising from the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the EU are identified and managed.

Department for Education

Teachers

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many full time teachers left the profession last year; andhow many teachers were in service in each of the past ten years.

lord agnew of oulton: Between November 2016 and November 2017, 34,340 full-time qualified teachers left service from state funded schools in England. Over the same period, there were 38,310 qualified entrants to teaching in state funded schools.The attached table shows the number of full-time equivalent number of teachers and teaching assistants in service in state funded schools in England, 2007 to 2017. Please note that the data source changed in 2010 with the introduction of the School Workforce Census. Information for the years prior to this relate to the situation as at January each year, information for years 2010 onwards relate to November each year. For 2010, both data sources have been included. Figures are in thousands.



HL9122_Full_time_equivalent_teachers_teaching_assi
(PDF Document, 141.09 KB)

Free School Meals

lord beecham: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the extent to whichunderspending on free school meals occasioned by absence or other reason is being retained as profit by the supplier; and whether they have any plans to tackle any such practice.

lord agnew of oulton: We have not made an assessment. Schools have a duty to provide free school meals to all pupils who are eligible for them and to pay for free school meals from the funding provided by the government, which includes additional funding for pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds. While the costs of providing meals each day may vary with factors such as absence, the vast majority of costs will be based on the number of pupils eligible.We trust schools to manage their own budgets and it is for them to decide how to use their funding to provide free school meals, including whether to use a supplier.

The Senior Deputy Speaker

House of Lords: Internet

lord empey: To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker whetherthe Members' Attendance facilityhas been removed from the Lords online Members' Centre; if so, why; and whether there are any plans to reinstate it.

lord mcfall of alcluith: Since the beginning of the current Session, Members’ attendance has been reported through a new digital system. Due to this change, Members have been temporarily unable to access their attendance records through the Lords’ online Members Centre.Work to reinstate Members' access to online attendance records is now underway. It is anticipated that this facility will be developed and tested over the coming months in time for the return of the House following the conference recess.

Department for International Trade

Trade Remedies

lord allen of kensington: To ask Her Majesty's Government whentheyintend to publish full details of the independent UK trade remedies framework.

baroness fairhead: The UK is committed to a rules-based international trade system and is in the process of establishing the Trade Remedies Authority to ensure that UK businesses continue to be protected from unfair and injurious trade practices and injury caused by unforeseen surges in imports once we leave the EU. The framework under which the Trade Remedies Authority will operate is set out in the Taxation (Cross-border Trade) Bill due for the Report Stage in the House of Commons on Monday 16th July. Further details will be published in due course.

Trade Agreements

lord jones of cheltenham: To ask Her Majesty's Government what progressthey have made on new trade deals with (1) Indonesia, (2) Pakistan, (3) Nigeria, (4) Bangladesh, and (5) Japan; how many visits to each of those countries have been made since 23 June 2016 by ministers and officials of the Department for International Trade; and what was the total cost of those visits.

baroness fairhead: The United Kingdom cannot negotiate its own trade agreements whilst it is still a member of the European Union.As the UK leaves the European Union, the Government recognises the need for a smooth transition in our existing trading arrangements. Once we have left, the UK and Japan will establish a new economic partnership based on the final terms of the EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement. The UK-Japan Trade and Investment Working Group, established last year, is tasked to deliver on this commitment and met for the second time in May.The Government has introduced legislation which enables the UK to put in place a trade preference scheme for developing countries which will, as a minimum, provide the same level of access as the EU’s scheme. Indonesia, Pakistan, Nigeria and Bangladesh are currently beneficiaries of the EU scheme, and we will seek continuity in these existing agreements as we leave.Since 23 June 2016, Ministers from the Department for International Trade (DIT) have visited Japan five times, Indonesia twice and Pakistan once. DIT’s Permanent Secretary (Antonia Romeo) and Second Permanent Secretary (Crawford Falconer) have each visited Japan once. Visits to these countries by other DIT officials is not recorded centrally.Details of expenditure for DIT Ministerial travel overseas is published on the Gov.uk website on a quarterly basis: www.gov.uk/government/publications/dit-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel-january-to-march-2018

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

EU Grants and Loans

baroness hayter of kentish town: To ask Her Majesty's Government how they plan to structure the post-Brexit Shared Prosperity Fund; when it will become operative; what criteria will be used for the allocation of funds; and whether it will permit funds allocated for the devolved authorities to be allocated by them.

baroness hayter of kentish town: To ask Her Majesty's Government what consultation they are undertaking on the structure of the Shared Prosperity Fund’s governance, and its expenditure criteria.

lord bourne of aberystwyth: The UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) will be a domestic programme of investment to boost productivity and reduce economic inequality across the whole of the UK following our departure from the European Union. The fund will be aligned to the pillars of the modern industrial strategy.We have committed to launching a full public consultation on the design and priorities of the fund this year, as announced in the Industrial Strategy white paper. Decisions on the operation of the UKSPF will be made following the consultation.

Social Rented Housing: Rents

lord kennedy of southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many homes previously on social rents have been converted to affordable rents since 2010.

lord bourne of aberystwyth: Currently the 2016/17 data is the most recent available and MHCLG does not hold this data before the 2013/14 financial year.However, there were 47,512 new affordable rent lettings made in social housing between 2013/14 and 2016/17 that were previously let at social rents.

Northamptonshire County Council

lord kennedy of southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government (1) how, and (2) with what frequency they anticipate the commissioners appointed to Northamptonshire County Council will engage with members of the authority.

lord bourne of aberystwyth: Commissioners in Northamptonshire County Council have responsibility for strategic financial management, governance and scrutiny and the appointment of statutory officers. How they carry out their role on a day to day basis is for them to determine. They are working closely with the leadership team at the Council, including meeting with elected Members.

Housing: Construction

lord kennedy of southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the proposals in Oliver Letwin’s Independent Review of Build Out Rates Draft Analysis, published in June, on local authorities’ ability to ensure developers keep to commitments made when seeking planning permission.

lord bourne of aberystwyth: The Government welcomes the excellent work of Sir Oliver and his expert panel to date on his recently published analysis. We will respond in full when Sir Oliver publishes his final report with recommendations in the Autumn.We have also consulted on a new approach to viability and reforms to developer contributions. This will mean that developers know the contributions expected of them and local communities are clear about the infrastructure they will get alongside new homes. We are currently analysing responses and aim to publish a final National Planning Policy Framework in July.

Housing: Foreign Nationals

lord morris of aberavon: To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate, if any, they have made of the number of purchases of new build properties on the south bank of the Thames by foreign buyers in each of the last three years; and whether they intend to review the duties placed on property lawyers to investigate the source of funding for property purchases.

lord bourne of aberystwyth: Regarding property purchase on the South Bank of the Thames the Government does not hold the data requested. However, recent research reports from the LSE and York University show that, in London, between 13-20 per cent of new builds were sold to individual foreign investors. The Government recognises concerns in some regions about the impact foreign purchase of property have on the availability of property for UK residents and is keeping the situation under review.The Government is committed to ensuring that the UK property market is hostile to illicit finance whilst ensuring burdens on legitimate businesses are minimised. Legal professionals involved in the buying and selling of real property are covered by UK money-laundering regulations and must conduct customer due diligence checks, including identifying and verifying their clients and conducting on-going monitoring, including, where necessary, checking the source of funds. The regulations were comprehensively updated in 2017 and we’ll continue to keep them under review.

Refuges: Domestic Violence

baroness lister of burtersett: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the findings of the research by Women's Aid in its reportNowhere to Turn, published 4 July; and, in particular, of the number of victims of domestic abuse who were unable to access a refuge in 2017–18.

lord bourne of aberystwyth: Domestic abuse is a life-shattering and abhorrent crime that nobody should have to suffer. The Government is absolutely committed to protecting victims of domestic abuse and my Department funds Women’s Aid to undertake this important research so that we can better understand what is happening and address issues.In 2017/18 we provided an additional £326,955 for the ‘Routes to Support’ which used to support the No Women Turned Away project and ensure victims calling the National Domestic Violence Helpline looking for refuge get additional help in finding the support they need. We have also commissioned an audit of domestic abuse service delivery - being run by Ipsos MORI – to give us a picture of provision across England, enabling us to understand what impact services are having and to identify gaps in provision.The Prime Minister announced a draft Domestic Abuse Bill in 2017 and we have consulted on how we can best tackle domestic abuse so that we could hear from a wide range of stakeholders, including survivors of domestic abuse and the organisations that support them. We want the Domestic Abuse Bill and a supporting package of non-legislative measures to be truly transformative and bring lasting change to the victims and families experiencing domestic abuse. The consultation on domestic abuse closed on 31 May and we are considering responses ahead of publishing a formal Government response before introducing any legislation.We are grateful for the support of Women’s Aid and the wider domestic abuse sector for this important work and we will continue to seek their expertise and knowledge as we develop policy on how victims of domestic abuse receive the support they need.

Department for Work and Pensions

Universal Credit: Disability

lord beecham: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether,following the High Court ruling that Universal Credit unlawfully discriminates against claimants transferring from legacy benefits resulting in the loss of Disability and Severe Disability Premium, they intend to changethat guidance so that transfer to Universal Credit will not be effected until transitional protection is given.

baroness buscombe: The court found in the Department’s favour on three of the four points raised by the claimant. We will be applying to appeal on the one point that the court found against the Department. On 7th June, prior to the judgment, we announced changes that would help people who receive the Severe Disability Premium. These changes will form part of the Universal Credit Managed Migration and Transitional Protection Regulations which we intend to bring forward in the Autumn. The intention is that once legislation has passed, people on legacy benefits who get the Severe Disability Premium will stay on their legacy benefits until they can be managed migrated to Universal Credit, at which point transitional protection will be in pace. We will also consider retrospective protection for people previously in receipt of Severe Disability Premium who have already moved onto UC.

Social Security Benefits

baroness stroud: To ask Her Majesty's Government, for each year since 2012, what proportion ofthe population aged between 18 and 59 over the preceding four years were claiming working age benefits for three of those four years.

baroness buscombe: This statistic was part of a series last updated in April 2016 and has since been discontinued. It formed part of the Social Justice Outcomes Framework which was replaced by the Improving Lives: Helping Workless Families indicators, published in April 2017. Any new statistic measuring the duration of working age benefit claims would need to incorporate Universal Credit data. As a result, the information requested is not readily available and can only be provided at disproportionate cost. The Government still produces data on long-term worklessness and on some individual out-of-work benefit claim durations. The Office for National Statistics publishes data on children in long-term workless households and on households where all members have never worked. There is also available data on the duration of Job Seeker’s Allowance, Income Support and Employment and Support Allowance claims.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Agriculture: Carbon Emissions

baroness jones of whitchurch: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to address the lack of carbon emissions reductions in the agricultural sector; and whether these emissions are currently expected to miss the targets of their fourth (2023–27) and fifth (2028–32) carbon budgets.

lord gardiner of kimble: Our Clean Growth Strategy and 25 Year Environment Plan set out a range of specific commitments to reduce emissions from agriculture, including through environmental land management, strengthening biosecurity and control of endemic diseases in livestock, and encouraging the use of low emissions fertilisers.   We want our land and agriculture sectors to play a significant role in low carbon growth, supported through a system of incentives to improve efficiency and sustain our natural environment.   Greenhouse gas emissions from the agricultural industry have fallen by around 20 per cent since 1990 and we are working with the agricultural industry to look at options that would strengthen the delivery of their Greenhouse Gas Action Plan. Defra takes a key role in supporting emissions reduction by providing scientific advice and evidence.

Home Office

Special Constables: Stun Guns

lord davies of stamford: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 28 June (HL8701), whether Special Constables can qualify for Taser training; if so, on what criteria; and if not, why not.

baroness williams of trafford: Special Constables are not currently authorised to use Taser®. It would be for the National Police Chiefs Council to determine whether any changes to the current model were needed in the first instance. If so, their proposal would then need to be considered by the Home Secretary.

Department for Exiting the European Union

European Economic Area

baroness altmann: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the government of Norway and the governments of other EEA and EFTA states about the UK remaining a member of the EEA after March 2019.

lord callanan: The UK has made clear both in public and during discussions with the EEA EFTA states that we will be leaving the European Economic Area (EEA). Continued participation in the EEA Agreement beyond the implementation period would not pass the tests that the Prime Minister set out for our future economic partnership with the EU in that it would not deliver control of our borders or our laws.In the absence of any further action, the EEA Agreement will no longer operate in respect of the UK when we leave the EU in March 2019.However, at the March European Council we agreed with the EU that the UK is to be treated as a Member State for the purposes of international agreements for the duration of the implementation period; this includes the EEA Agreement.Once the implementation period ends, the EEA Agreement will no longer apply to the UK. We will seek to put in place new arrangements with these countries for the end of the implementation period.

Borders: Northern Ireland

baroness deech: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report by Lars Karlsson for the European Parliament Smart Border 2.0 Avoiding a hard border on the island of Ireland for customs control and the free movement of persons, published November 2017.

lord callanan: The report shows a misunderstanding of the Northern Ireland and Ireland context and proposes a fundamental redesign of the Common Travel Area (CTA), which neither the UK, Ireland or the EU have ever envisaged. Whilst there are some parallels with the work we are developing on the wider UK-EU border model that would apply, for example, to the border between Dover and Calais, this report proposes a form of hard border, albeit an efficiently managed one, for the Northern Ireland-Ireland land border and is therefore fundamentally inconsistent with Government policy and the commitments we have made. It is unacceptable to suggest any solutions which would require physical infrastructure at the border. Both the UK Government and Irish Government have explicitly ruled this out, as the removal of physical checks and security installations has been a key dividend of the peace process.

Treasury

Social Security Benefits: Children

lord bassam of brighton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of how many families who have been affected by the two-child benefit policy are using, or have used, food banks; and what estimate they have made of the saving to the Exchequer from that policy since its introduction.

lord bates: No estimate has been made of the use of food banks by families affected by the policy to provide support for a maximum of two children. Estimates of the savings from the policy were published at the Spring Budget 2017 in table 2.2 (measures announced at Autumn Statement 2016 or earlier that take effect from April 2017 or later). The table shows annual savings of just under £2 billion by 2021-22.

Gaming Machines: Taxation

lord chadlington: To ask Her Majesty's Government how muchthey expect to generate in taxes from Fixed Odds Betting Terminals in (1) 2018, (2) 2019, and (3) 2020.

lord bates: Forecasts for betting and gaming tax receipts are published by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR). However, the OBR does not publish a breakdown of projected revenues from the 7 individual betting and gaming duties due to the disclosive nature of the underlying data; doing so would contravene taxpayer confidentiality rules due to the limited number of operators in certain areas of the market.

Financial Services: Advisory Services

lord mendelsohn: To ask Her Majesty's Government, furtherto the Written Answer by Lord Bates on 25 June (HL8507), which of the Financial Advice Market Review’s 28 recommendations (1) have been implemented, and (2) are on track to be implemented; andwhen those not yet completedwill be implemented.

lord mendelsohn: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bates on 25 June (HL8507),how they will measure the success of their actions to improve the market for pension advice and make advice more accessible and affordable; and when such an assessment will be made.

lord mendelsohn: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byLord Bates on 25 June (HL8506), whether they will publish the details of their planned follow-up exercise to the 2015 Financial Advice Market Review.

lord mendelsohn: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byLord Bates on 25 June (HL8506), how many firms have accessed regulatory support from the Financial Conduct Authority Advice Unit in each year since it was established.

lord bates: The Financial Advice Market Review (FAMR) has contributed to significant progress to make financial advice more accessible and affordable. The final report, published in March 2016, set out a package of 28 recommendations. HMT and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) have now implemented all the recommendations made to them, except the recommendation to review the outcomes of FAMR. This review will take place in 2019, with a final report published in 2020. The FAMR final report recommended that the FCA and HMT should work together to develop an appropriate baseline and indicators to monitor the development of the advice market, which should be tracked on an annual basis and published on the FCA’s website. This baseline report was published in June last year. The indicators include measures of consumers' use of advice and guidance (the 'demand' side) and measures relating to the provision of these services (the 'supply' side). The baseline will enable FCA and HMT to monitor developments in the market and assess at a high level the impact of the FAMR recommendations when conducting a review of their outcomes. This will include an assessment of the outcome of recommendations focused on making pensions more accessible and affordable, including the Pensions Advice Allowance and the increase in the income tax exemption for employer-arranged financial advice on pensions from £150 to £500. One of FAMR’s recommendations was that the FCA should establish an Advice Unit to help firms develop their automated advice models. The Advice Unit has provided regulatory feedback to 22 firms looking to bring new propositions to the market since June 2016 and continues to work with new applicants. The Advice Unit has worked with 10 firms in 2016 and 12 firms in 2017. The number of firms the Advice Unit has worked with in 2018 will be released shortly.

Retirement Outcomes Review

lord mendelsohn: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will publish a response to the Financial Conduct Authority's forthcoming Retirement Outcome Review; andif so, when.

lord bates: The government does not ordinarily respond to reports by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). We will consider the findings of the FCA’s Retirement Outcomes Review and consider the implications for consumers and industry and the recommendations carefully. The government welcomes the FCA’s work in this area ensuring that the market supports consumer choice and consumers have the right information when making decisions on how to manage their retirement income. The government stands ready to work with industry and regulators to ensure customer demands are being met and any potential barriers to a thriving, competitive market can be addressed. We look forward to working with the FCA and industry to consider the review’s recommendations.

Banks: Republic of Ireland

lord morris of aberavon: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the cost to the Treasury of providing support to banks in the Republic of Ireland during the 2008 banking crisis; and whether any of the funds provided have been repaid.

lord bates: HM Government did not provide any direct financial assistance to banks headquartered in Ireland during the financial crisis.In 2010, Parliament authorised a bilateral loan of £3.2 billion to be lent to the Irish Government as part of a wider international assistance package. Disbursements were made in 8 tranches between 2011 and 2013. Principal repayments will begin in April 2019 and the Government expects the loan to be repaid in full with interest. The most recent statutory report on the loan was laid in Parliament on 24 April 2018 and is available to view online.

European Union: Assets

lord stoddart of swindon: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the total value of the capital and other assets owned by the EU; what percentage of those assets have been contributed to by the UK; and whether that figure will be used as a credit in any calculation of a financial settlement on leaving the EU.

lord bates: Our financial settlement with the EU includes a settlement on the Union’s liabilities which takes into account corresponding assets. We have also agreed that the UK will receive future income from the Union’s investment assets, including those linked to contingent liabilities. The UK’s share of the EU’s assets and liabilities, where not specified, will be calculated by applying the UK’s historical post-rebate financing share using data from across 2014-2020. In March 2018, the Office for Budget Responsibility forecast that the net value of the UK’s share of the EU’s liabilities and assets will be €2.7 billion (£2.5 billion).

Fuels: Excise Duties

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to increase fuel duty; and what assessment theyhave madeof the impact ofan increase in fuel duty on (1) the cost of living, and(2) working class families.

lord bates: HM Treasury’s distributional analysis publication currently breaks down measures by tax, welfare, and spending on public services, and the freeze in fuel duty forms part of these published distributional impacts. However, more detailed breakdowns for individual measures are unlikely to be reliable as (1) many of the measures in this analysis are underpinned by small sample sizes; and (2) measures often interact with each other. For this reason, a cumulative assessment gives the best representation of the intended overall policy effect. The Office for National Statistics’ ‘Effects of Tax and Benefits’ publication provides information on the costs of fuel duty to households across the income distribution.[1] The Chancellor makes decisions on taxation as part of the Budget process. [1] Effects of taxes and benefits on household income - table 2a, row 64https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/personalandhouseholdfinances/incomeandwealth/datasets/theeffectsoftaxesandbenefitsonhouseholdincomefinancialyearending2014

Public Expenditure

lord marlesford: To ask Her Majesty's Government how much they spent on (1) defence, and (2) international aid, in each of the last five years; and and in each case what that spending represented as a proportion of GDP for each such year.

lord bates: Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses 2018’ is an annual HM Treasury publication on public spending. It is due to be released on 19 July 2018. The collection can be found at the link below: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/public-expenditure-statistical-analyses-pesa Table 5.2 will include the latest information on public sector service spend on all functions of government on a consistent and comparable basis. This presentation follows the UN defined Classification of Functions of Government (COFOG). This split includes defence and foreign economic aid expenditure for each of the last five years. GDP figures will also be available in annex F of the same publication. It is important to note defence and foreign economic aid are also evaluated against alternative internationally agreed classifications. Official Development Assistance (ODA) is the internationally-agreed classification of foreign aid financing and is measured in accordance with international standards agreed by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The UN COFOG measure of Foreign economic aid presented in this table is quite different from the UK ODA measure and therefore not comparable. For example the UK ODA measure include financial transactions such a loans, whereas the UN COFOG measure does not. Also, the UK ODA analysis is on a calendar year rather than financial year basis. A link to the latest ODA releases is provided here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-on-international-development The 2015 Spending Review continued the commitment to meet the NATO investment pledge to spend 2% of GDP on Defence for the rest of this decade. This is evaluated using the NATO definitions of Defence spending rather than the UN COFOG definitions that are used in this table. The UN COFOG and NATO measures of Defence use different definitions and are therefore not comparable. For example, the NATO Defence figures include pensions whereas in COFOG these are included in Social Protection. Details and figures on NATO Defence expenditures can be found at the following link: https://www.nato.int/nato_static_fl2014/assets/pdf/pdf_2017_06/20170629_170629-pr2017-111-en.pdf

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

ICT: Training

lord watson of invergowrie: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support small businesses and the self-employed to improve their digital skills.

lord ashton of hyde: The Digital Skills Partnership (DSP), announced in the UK Digital Strategy 2017, brings together organisations from across all sectors to tackle the digital skills divide and ensure that digital skills initiatives are better coordinated and targeted more effectively. The aim is ambitious: to improve digital skills and capability levels across the skills spectrum. The Government-convened Partnership has formed four Delivery Groups to drive forward action in priority areas. The Digital Enterprise Delivery Group, led by Lloyds Banking Group and the Federation of Small Businesses, is working to increase the digital capabilities of SMEs and Charities. This group is developing a peer-to-peer support network for SMEs and those running them and has to date created support materials including toolkits to boost skills and signposting to digital skills opportunities in their local area. Government is also taking measures to address the UK’s productivity gap, launching the new Business Basics Programme and funding the industry backed Be The Business initiative - both aimed at supporting SMEs to utilise innovative tools and technologies, as well as simple management practices to improve their productivity. There will be a total of £2 million available in the first call of the Business Basics Fund.